FOOLS FOR CHRIST

Saturday in the 4th Week of Lent
John 7:40-53

Today is the first of April. It is “April Fools Day”. Let me remind everyone that “April Fools Day” is not a liturgical celebration. But let me invite all of you to be “fools” today and always. Yes, let us be “fools” for the Lord.

To be “fools” for the Lord is to live our lives according to the values of an upside-down kingdom, where the first is last and the last is first, where forgiving does not mean seven times but seventy times seven, where when slapped on one cheek the other cheek should be given, too, and where death means life. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus preached. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus offered and still offers today. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus brought and threw His hearers out of their seats while laughing at Him in scorn. And Jesus was even “foolish” to die for this kind of kingdom.

Like a lamb led to the slaughter, Jesus was meek and silent. He offered no resistance. Resistance to suffering on account of His Gospel was not a by-word in the kingdom His Gospel preached. Submission to God’s will is. Resignation to God’s will is. Faith in God is.

Looking so “foolish” in the eyes of the world, Jesus became the Lamb of God because it is He who takes away the sins of the world. And this “foolish” Lamb is no laughing matter. He alone knows how to get to heaven where both the foolish and the wise dream of residing permanently someday.

All saints are “fools” for Christ. But today, “April Fools Day” is not their feastday. Everyday is “Fools Day” for saints. The world is always fooled by the “foolishness” of saints. The world never understands the ways of heaven. The world is never meant for one as wise as the saints.